Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 7/22

Batman '66 #25

Story: Jeff Parker (Night of the Harlequin) and Gabe Soria (Bad Men)

Art: Lukas Ketner & Kelly Fitzpatrick (Night of the Harlequin) and Ty Templeton & Tony Avina (Bad Men)

There are very few comics on the racks that are as fun as Batman '66. I've been enjoying how the book has been varying its content, from some issues with full length stories and others with two shorter pieces, and might even be enjoying the letter more; that compactness of story seems to work with these zany Batman stories. This was one of those issues, and featured another modern Batman villain making their classic TV debut. If the cover above didn't give it away, this is the issue introducing Harley Quinn '66, or just Harlequin as she goes by here, in full costume. We'd gotten hints of Harley already, as she appeared as the Joker's shrink who was driven insane by crazy science in an earlier issue, but this is where she escapes from the Arkham Institute, dons a costume and roller skates, and becomes a supervillain. It's a fun story, as Harlequin proves even more unpredictable than Joker, and Batman and Robin have to get creative to bring her to justice. We also get a great panel where Batman says Harley might be a greater threat than Joker within ear shot of Joker, and he clearly has his feelings hurt, which segues nicely into the second story of the issue, "Bad Men," which was the highlight of the issue. Barbara Gordon is working as a temp at an ad agency when Penguin, Riddler, Joker, and Catwoman (The Eartha Kitt version) take the who ad agency hostage so they can find a way to rebrand the villains and get them the attention of Gotham again. Since Barbara can't change into Batgirl, she instead has to use her wits to outsmart the villains. It's a fun story, and again does something I like in these stories, showing the heroes out-thinking their foes instead of just beating them physically. Barbara's victory is perfect, and plays on the vanity of these characters, which is a defining characteristic of each of them in pretty much all their versions; this is why Batman's foes have never banded together like Flash's Rogues for the long term: every one of them thinks they should be in charge. "Bad Men" also features art from Ty Templeton, who has done plenty of these '66 set stories, and whose art has become the style i most associate with the comics. His work is charming and gorgeous, working so well with the 60s. 

Five Ghosts #17

Story: Frank J. Barbiere

Art: Chris Mooneyham & Lauren Affe

I saw a lot of Twitter debate last week about how comics are often credited to just the writer, when the artist or artists often plays as important a roll in creating the book. I've been guilty of not crediting complete artistic teams, something I've been trying to remedy for some time, even before I saw that thread. This is a long way of saying that the new issue of Five Ghosts is a triumph not just of story and words but of art. Frank J. Barbiere does his usual excellent job of giving Fabian Gray, the protagonist of the title who is able to channel the powers of five literary "ghosts" through the dreamstone within him, the words of a dashing adventurer, and devise an exciting conclusion to the current horror arc. But this issue, which is mostly Fabian and Van Helsing fighting a mutated version of Fabian's best friend and brother-in-law Sebastian Windsor and then the man behind the mutation, Dr. Moreau, fives artist Chris Mooneyham time to shine. The battle is stunning, exciting, and flows from panel-to-panel perfectly. There's a particular series of panels where Fabian determines he can use a chandelier to trap the transformed Sebastian that sticks out in my mind as one of the best choreographed sequences I've seen in comics recently. I love the way Mooneyham shows the ghosts as Fabian channels their abilities, and the hideous transformed forms of Sebastian and Moreau will send shivers down your spine. This issue wraps up the third arc of Five Ghosts, and the epilogue sets Fabian on a collision course with The Cabal, the villains who have haunted him since the beginning of the series. I don't know if this is the final arc of the series, but if it is, it's been a heck of a ride, and if the last arc can be half as exciting as this issue was, it's going to be a spectacular conclusion.

Rick and Morty #4

Story: Zac Gorman

Art: CJ Cannon & Ryan Hill and Marc Ellerby

With season two having debuted last night (or this morning, since it was midnight and some people love their semantics) on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim, I think I have Rick and Morty on the brain. If you don't know the show, Rick and Morty was created by Dan (Community) Harmon and Justin Roiland, and is about a mad and amoral scientist (Rick Sanchez) who comes to live with his daughter and her family and takes his grandson (Morty) world/universe/multiverse spanning adventures, mostly for his own amusement and profit. The comic book tie-in are original adventures, and this one-shot story will give you a good idea if you will like the comic and animated series. Rick wakes Morty up in the middle of the night and drags him to an alien world where Rick is basically a carpetbagger, running a plantation on a world that was decimated by a civil war, and he needs Morty to spy on the workers who Rick believes are planning a revolt. Morty quickly comes to empathize with the workers, especially when he learns Rick is the one who started the war in the first place, which shouldn't surprise anyone who has seen the show. I'll be honest, if you want a protagonist who you can like and respect more than ten percent of the time, you should probably move along. Rick is at his best amoral, and often puts others in danger for no other reason than it's the easiest way to do it. Morty is an ok kid, but he's a hormonal teenager, and does, as Rick points out, often have "wienerbrain." But this issue ends with a scene that's kind of touching and shows that small fraction of the time where you see a decent guy in Rick. Or you think so until it all goes downhill again. The comic does a perfect job of capturing the joke a minute pace of the source cartoon, as well as its warped sense of humor. This issue's backup story spotlights Jerry, Morty's dad and Rick's son-in-law, and a normal day in his life, and how Rick just sort of... well, you'll see if you read it. It's a nice insight into the character who is usually played for nothing but laughs. So if you like the cartoon, or other similar ones like The Venture Bros., you should give the comic a shot.

And Dan Grote continues our love affair with the new Archie Comics with this crossover that makes Archie Vs. Predator (which ended this week in bizarre and hilarious fashion as well) look plain normal...

Archie vs. Sharknado

Story: Anthony C. Ferrante

Pencils: Dan Parent

Veronica’s dad gets his arms bit off by sharks, followed by the rest of him. Sabrina the Teenage Witch’s limbs are also bitten off, as she tries to cast a spell. A beloved teacher is eaten.

Yes, even in Riverdale, when a Sharknado comes to town, there is a death toll.

The name of this comic is Archie vs. Sharknado, but the real heroes of this double-sized one-shot, the Ian Ziering and Tara Reid, if you will, are Betty and Veronica, who first encounter the titular shark storm on a trip to Washington, D.C., ostensibly the same one from last week’s Syfy original movie Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No. The two quickly find themselves improvising new ways to kill sharks, use their clothing to survive falls from great heights and steal a motorcycle and a helicopter, in that order.

If the comic hews closely to the conventions of the Sharknado trilogy, that’s largely because it’s written by Anthony Ferrante, the director of the movies, the latest of which bowed the day of Archie vs. Sharknado’s release. Meanwhile, classic Archie penciler Dan Parent gives it that pre-reboot Riverdale look.

Ridiculous moments abound. Archie and Cheryl Blossom climb onto a boat using a staircase made of unconscious sharks. Jughead bites a shark that in turn steals his trademark hat. Veronica shoots flaming arrows with a crossbow. Josie and the Pussycats sing the Sharknado theme song. Svenson the janitor reveals a shed full of chainsaws (and a tractor equipped with a nitro-boost button) that he keeps “because the trees are taking over Riverdale.” Principal Weatherby has a war flashback. Archie chainsaws Cheryl out of a shark, just like Ziering did in the first movie. And perhaps most incredulously, A TEACHER LETS HIS STUDENTS BUILD A BOMB IN POST-COLUMBINE AMERICA!

All the while, sharks slaughter mercilessly and are slaughtered mercilessly in their turn. Shark innards rain from the sky and pile up on the ground, and teenagers run around soaked in blood and wielding chainsaws, blades and whatever else they can get their hands on. If Archie is an all-ages-friendly company, they sure do like messing with readers’ heads when the opportunity arises.

Final note: As sharks rain down from the sky, there’s a running discussion between Riverdale’s biggest nerd, Dilton, and his girlfriend about classic disaster-movie tropes and whether Dilton himself is too important to die or just disposable enough to be offed in a way that would enrich the plot. It very much reminded me of the discussion Henchmen 21 and 24 had during Season 3 of The Venture Brothers in which 21 declares “We’re, like, main characters” … and then 24 dies in an explosion at the end of the season. I’m not saying that’s what happens to Dilton, but I’m also not not saying it.

Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 10/22

It's Halloween week, folks, and so for this week I'm going to review some comics with tales of horror and the supernatural this week. Plenty of other great books hit this week, including a double dose of Greg Rucka in Lazarus and Stumptown, a  new She-Hulk from Charles Soule, a delightfully funny issue of The Delinquents, and the debut of an interesting new direction for Catwoman, but for this week? Horror reigns in the Matt Signal reviews.

Colder: The Bad Seed #1
Story: Paul Tobin
Art: Juan Ferreyra

I did a recommendation for the original Colder mini-series on Friday, and so I'm happy to say I can review and recommend the first issue of the second series, The Bad Seed, today. Since the defeat of Nimble Jack, Declan and Reece have been living happily together. Reece is working again, and Declan is using his powers to help the insane recover; she even brings him to work to meet her coworkers and to let him help some of the patients. This bit of idyllic life isn't going to last. There is a hint that Reece is still effected by the events of the first series, as she asks him if, with Jack dead, they are safe from the Hungry World, the world of the insane, and Declan assures her they are safe, although there is a hint he is unsure. And he is quickly proven right. A new monster appears, one who has a hunger for fingers, and who is using them for some macabre planting, walking around with a clay pot and planning for something to grow. He also shows a fascination with Declan, whose fingers he "feeds." Whatever this monster has in mind, it's not going to end well for our protagonists. The plot of the issue is simple, and sets up the new series, but since it's been quite a while since the last series, I can see why. It also establishes the powers and creep factor of our new monster, which is high. He doesn't seem to have the same macabre madness as Jack, but is more focused on his planting and harvesting, which is somehow more disturbing; planting is associated with growth and nature, so to see something using it in an evil way seems wrong on so many levels. Juan Ferreyra's monster designs continue to impress, as we see the madness of the people Declan is looking in on embodied by horrors surrounding them, and of course our new lead monster is, as you can see from the cover, made out of fingers. Again, there is something particularly unnatural about that, something off kilter that just made my skin crawl. It's good to be back in the world of Colder, but beware, as its a world where something dark waits around every corner.

Five Ghosts #13
Story: Frank J. Barbiere
Art: Chris Mooneyham

Five Ghosts is back, and just in time for Halloween. While the first arc of the series, about treasure hunter Fabian Grey, who has five ghosts of great literary figures/archetypes in him, was an Indiana Jones-style pulp adventure, and the next was a pirates/shipwrecked adventure, this third arc is cemented deeply in the horror genre. Set in Romania, the story opens with Fabian saving a young boy from what seem to be vampires, and finds out the boy is bringing medicine to the nearest village, where a plague has set in. Arriving in a village, we find that Fabian is following a clue to his the whereabouts of his best friend, kidnapped at the end of the last issue. When the village elder sees the symbol that is the clue, we hear a tale of the rich family who once lived in a nearby manor, a story that is gothic and horrible, with sickness, death, and elder gods. Fabian has dreams where he must confront one of his ghosts, the Vampire, who is being brought out by being in its native, for want of a better word, genre, and though Fabian wins, the Vampire has always been the most insistent of the ghosts and I wonder if Fabian will be able to hold him back forever. Finally, we see a man in a wagon dressed as a plague doctor, you know, with the creepy bird mask, and we learn that he is not curing the plague, but spreading it, and is creating more of the vampire/zombies from the beginning of the issue. Five Ghosts is a comic that has the best kind of pulp vibe, taking all the tropes of classic adventure genres and mixing them together. It's take on horror is atmospheric, both from writer Frank Barbiere's script, full of portent and mystery, and artist Chris Mooneyham's moody, dark art working to add to the sense of gloom. The vampire/zombie monsters are threatening and wreak of evil, and there's something I've always found unsettling about plague doctors, and Mooneyham makes this one all the more unsettling. With mystery, monsters, and heroics, the new arc of Five Ghosts looks to be another exciting adventure of Fabian Grey.

The Unwritten: Apocalypse #10
Story: Mike Carey
Art: Peter Gross

The final arc of The Unwritten, "Annals of Comparative Literature," begins with Tom Taylor, the man whose father sewed his life into the life of his fictional character, and his band of allies preparing to make one final attempt to stop the evil Pullman from wiping out existence. Meanwhile, Pullman and his allies are attempting to, well, wipe out existence. But it works for neither of them. The Unwritten is a story about stories and their power, so everyone quickly realizes that tools of power from a story have no power out of that context, so a race is on, as the story ends with Tommy coming face-to-wand with his fictional counterpart, boy wizard Tommy Taylor. The action of this issue is a lot of talking and planing, so it gives the characters time to have some great moments, especially Pauly Bruckner. When Bruckner was originally introduced, he was a comedic figure, a hitman trapped in a Winnie-the-Pooh type story where he was in the body of an  anthropomorphic rabbit. But as the series has continued, a character I thought was a one off gag has grown in depth, filled with anger at his fate, and now a more pathetic figure, just wanting to get back to the story. Having betrayed Tom to Pullman, he now abandons Pullman to warn Tom. That evolution of Pauly is one of the things that makes The Unwritten great, taking something so minor and making it so deep. There's also a wonderful moment between Tom and Lizzy, his romantic interest. I've been rooting for these kids to get and stay together for years, so seeing that they are now really a couple is nice. In the world of Tommy Taylor, Pullman's messenger encounters Count Ambrosio, Tommy's arch nemesis, who has appeared in our world a few times, possessing people, but to see him in his full vampiric power (see, vampires, bringing it back around to horror) makes him seem a more daunting foe. And of course, in the background, the literal puppet master, Madam Rausch, plays the two sides against each other. I'm wondering if the story with Pullman will be wrapped up next issue, leaving Tom to deal with Rausch in the very end, or if the final battler will have three sides. One way or the other, this issue starts what should be a grand climax to The Unwritten.

Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 10/30

Five Ghosts #6
Story: Frank J Barbiere
Art: Garry Brown

After a few months off after the initial arc, Five Ghosts is back with a tidy and fun little one off. Fabian Gray travels to Japan to answer a summons from an old flame of his, to aid her in stopping a clan that is moving in on her family's lands, and to retrieve a mythic sword, the sword of Masamune, which she tells him is made from the same Dreamstone material that gave Fabian his own unique powers. It's a story of samurai action, with beautifully choreographed fight scenes, betrayal, and Fabian using his powers in some cool ways. It's cool to see more about Fabian's backstory; at one point he gets out of a trap that was crafted to stop him from summoning the ghosts that grant him his abilities, and he points out that he was the world's greatest thief before any of that happened. Little bits like that add to Fabian as a character and make him more well rounded than just being a vehicle for the stuff that happens when he calls one fo the ghosts. Artists garry Brown fills in for regular artist Chris Mooneyham, and does an admirable job of it. His style is different than Mooneyham's, but still creates a great pulp atmosphere. If you haven't tried Five Ghosts yet, this is a perfect issue to try out, and if you're a fan of the pulp atmosphere, you'd be doing yourself a favor.

 

 

 

Guardians of the Galaxy #8
Story: Brian Michael Bendis
Art: Francesco Francavilla

Guardians of the Galaxy has been a pleasant surprise since its reboot. I was a very big fan of the last incarnation of the book, the one written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, and featuring a sprawling cast that included most of the current members, plus a bunch of others, including Adam Warlock, my favorite Marvel character of all time, and Cosmo, a telepathic Russian dog. So the streamlined team was a worry, since I felt one of the things that I enjoyed about the last series was all the different relationships; although the new series did still include Peter Quill, Starlord, a character Abnett and Lanning spent a lot of time fleshing out, cosmic mainstays Drax and Gamora, and fan favorites Rocket Raccoon and Groot. The stories so far have been fun, and the characters read like themselves, if slightly Bendis-ized versions. This issue begins Guardians' crossover with Marvel's big Summer/Fall event, Infinity. The main Infinity series has been ok, if a bit lacking in focus in my opinionso it's nice to see a crossover that has a nice tight focus. The Guardians have been contacted by Abagail Brand, the head of SWORD, the Earth organization in charge of dealing with extraterrestrial incursion, asking for them to free her from Thanos's forces on The Peak, the Sword space station headquarters. There's some great action scenes, as Starlord and Rocket infiltrate the Peak, free Brand, and go to try to retake the station. But the highlight of the issue is some great character work at the beginning. With Thanos making trouble again, Gamora, who was raised by Thanos, confronts Starlord and Drax about exactly how Thanos and Starlord escaped being trapped in a collapsed dimensions together, and how Drax is alive again. She gets little answer, and Gamora's anger at Starlord, and her own decision to go storming off to confront the father figure who has haunted her for her entire adult life, not to mention killed her on at least once occasion, does a lot to further develop her character and the reactions of the others helps flesh them out. Add the usual incredible art by the busiest man in comics, Francesco Francavilla, who draws a particularly great Rocket Raccoon, and you have a book that is living up to it's concept and its pedigree.

Itty Bitty Hellboy #3
Story & Art: Art Baltazar and Franco Aureliani

If only every comic could get Itty Bitty, I think we'd have much happier fans. After Tiny Titans and Superman Family Adventures, I didn't expect Art and Franco would next move to the macabre world of Mike Mignola's Hellboy, but not terribly surprising, it's still a joyful and amusing romp. Every issue is packed with humor and fun little character beats. This month's issue of Itty Bitty Hellboy opens with Hellboy preparing his favorite dish, pancakes (or "pamcakes" as he calls them, which readers of regular Hellboy comics know saved him from becoming evil), with the help of Liz Sherman's fire powers. Hellboy gets Baba Yaga to make one of his pancakes gigantic using her magic, and before you know it, everyone is asking Baba to make something huge. She banishes Hellboy and his friends to Hades, and the demons rally around Hellboy, only to have him use his pamcake making skills to keep them from destroying Earth. Lobster Johnson and Lobster Smith, his pet Lobster, dig their way out to try to help the world. And Roger the Homunculus finds a little love with Baba Yaga and Hecate. I can't really do the issue justice, since so much of it is about the punchline to the wonderful set-ups Art and Franco come up with, and the adorable visuals. I've said something like this with eveything I've ever reviewed by Art and Franco, but if you're looking for a change of pace from the usually grim and grity comics of today, you couldn't do better than trying out Itty Bitty Hellboy.

The Sandman: Overture #1
Story: Neil Gaiman
Art: JH Williams III

I wish I could type an approximation of a squeal of delight, because that would be the only thing that could do this wonderful comic justice. Neil Gaiman's The Sandman is one of the touchstone comics of the modern age and possibly of all time, and it is my favorite piece of longform graphic storytelling.  New work from Neil Gaiman is something I always look forward to, and this past year has been an embarrassment of riches, between The Ocean at the End of the Lane, his first novel for adults in years, two new childrens' books, Chu's Day and Fortunately the Milk, and now a return to the world of the Endless, with a story set before the first issue of The Sandman. Dream, or Morpheus if you'd rather, the protagonist of The Sandman, appears in this issue as he did in the many flashbacks that took place before his imprisonment in the first issue of the series; he is imperious, cold, and callous, something made clear in his tone when addressing Lucien, the librarian of dreams, a character who is a loyal retainer who Dream dismisses with barely an acknowledgment. The tone of Dream is chilling, as he prepares for war, something we saw a couple times over the course of The Sandman, and any reader familiar with it knows this can only mean trouble. Gaiman has lost none of his feeling for the characters that we know and love from The Sandman. It's interesting to see the Corinthian, the nightmare serial killer with mouths for eyes, again, and to see exactly what made him slip out of the Dreaming and into the waking world in the time of Dream's imprisonment. We also meet some new characters, including George Portcullis, a dreamer who manages Dream's London office, and Gaiman uses him to demonstrate the malleability of identity in dreams; identity was one of the themes often played with in Sandman. The final pages reveal something about the Endless and Dream that will hopefully be as surprising to the reader as it is to Dream himself.

Gaiman has often said he writes for his artists when he is working on a comics projects, playing to their strengths, and this issue is a perfect example of that. I've loved JH Williams III's work since Chase in the 90s, and his work has grown exponentially over the years, and this issue is a masterpiece. His use of nearly entirely two page spreads, his frightful Corinthian, the alien world at the beginning of he issue and it's population of sentient flowers, are all drawn in exquisite detail. Williams draws a Death who is especially beautiful, and the soft look he gives her stands in sharp contrast to the harsher lines he uses to draw her darker brother, Dream. The issue is a feast for the eyes, and I hope that the eventual collection is in landscape format to allow the art to be appreciated in its entirety by those who want to read the story in that format. When a creator returns to a legendary work there's always the concern they will have lost whatever it was that made that work something special. I am glad to say none of the magic that made Sandman has been lost over the intervening years; go, read it, and plesant dreams.

Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 7/31

Detective Comics Annual #2
Story: John Layman & Joshua Williamson
Art: Scot Eaton, Szymon Kudranski, Derlis Santacruz

Some years ago, Dan Slott, best known for his work on Amazing/Superior Spider-Man as well as other Marvel books, wrote some great Batman stories, mostly in the animated series title, Batman Adventures. But he also wrote a really creepy mini-series called Arkham Asylum: Living Hell, which not only had some great uses of classic Bat villains, but introduced a bunch of new ones, most of whom have been underused or not at all used. This years Detective Comics Annual takes one of these villains and introduces her into the New 52: Jane Doe, who has no identity of her own and takes the identities, skins, and skills of her victims. Its a very Batman villain concept, and John Layman, regular Detective Comics writer, and co-writer Joshua Williamson, don't change the formula. Instead we get Batman playing detective, trying to find out who Jane has replaced while also dealing with the Wrath killings that are happening in the main story in the monthly series. What I really enjoyed was the annual was divided into interconnected stories. The first is the traditional Batman versus a villain story, which is a well orchestrated little piece. The others deal with the ramifications of what happened in that story. One story deals with Jane Doe in Arkham, and we get a little more a view of exactly what she in from her own point of view. The last story deals with Jane's surviving final victim, and how he or she deals with seeing what Jane did with his or her life. I don't want to say who it is, but it was a great reveal at the ending to the main story, and seeing exactly how one's life is affected by supervillains is something we usually don't see from more common person, so its a nice touch, especially in an issue that deals so much with identity.

Five Ghosts: The Haunting of Fabian Gray #5
Story: Frank J. Barbiere
Art: Chris Mooneyham

The first arc on the now ongoing Five Ghosts: The Haunting of Fabian Gray wraps up with our title hero making peace with his past and the ghosts that haunt him, both literally and metaphorically. While Fabian faces down the Vampire, who seems to have his sister, imprisoned, in the final test, Shangri-la is under siege, with Fabian's friend, Sebastian, at risk from the attacking sorcerer. The inner battle Fabian has with the Vampire is less important than the peace he makes with the loss of Sylvia, his sister. Not that Fabian has given up his quest to find her, far from it, but he now has a drive to do good beyond that. If this had been the end of the series, it would have been a great place to leave him, but knowing that more is coming makes it all the more exciting, especially with the hints of the mysterious cabal that has been hunting Fabian. Chris Mooneyham's art, which has been excellent so far, kicks up into a new and even more incredible gear. The scenes in the dreamscape, as Fabian fights the Vampire and sees his sister are ethereal and gorgeous, and his battle in the real world with the swordsman/sorcerer is one of the most dynamic fight scenes I've seen in comics in a long time. While I'm trying to keep my comic consumption at a stable level, I'm very excited that I can add this book to my list of ongoing titles; Five Ghosts is a definite keeper.

Indestructible Hulk #11
Story: Mark Waid
Art: Matteo Scalera

Indestructible Hulk has been a solid book since its inception, but has stood in the shadow of Mark Waid's excellent run on Daredevil for me. This new issue, the beginning of the "Agent of T.I.M.E." arc, feels like the start of the breakout arc. This book has been a mix of superheroics and sci-fi, so a Hulk heading into the timestream to help fix the mess that the Avengers made of the it in Age of Ultron fits with the book's mission statement.  Before the time travel and Hulking-out, we get some great scenes between Bruce Banner and Maria Hill; Hill and Banner butt heads pretty much constantly, and I really enjoy the adversarial relationship between them. The appearance of Arthur Zarrko, a C-List Marvel time travel villain also known as the Tomorrow Man sets up the plot, and explains some of the interesting things Waid has been doing with Hulk. I haven't read a lot of Hulk since Peter David left, with the exception of an arc or two here and there, so I don't know exactly what the relationship between Bruce and his ex-wife Betty is right now, other than the fact that she's a Red She-Hulk, but Waid puts her to an interesting use in the issue. And the idea of Banner's consciousness travelling in a robot with the Hulk, and the two having to interact, is a very cool one too. Mark Waid made good use of time travel in his legendary run on The Flash, so I'm excited to see more of what he does in this arc. Oh, the above cover is the variant, by the way, but as a Revolutionary War buff, I had to choose it. Can't you just picture the Hulk screaming, "NO, John Hancock! Hulk will sign first!"

Scartch 9: Cat Tails #1
Story: Rob M. Worley
Art: Shannon Eric Dento, Justin Casteneda, Caanan Grall, Mike Roll, Jason T. Kruse

Scratch 9 returns with an anthology featuring a story for each of house cat Scratch's nine lives, each with a different artist. The original Scratch 9 series was a charming, action filled romp perfect for all ages, and the new incarnation is just as much fun, but the short story format allows writer Rob M. Worley to stretch his artistic legs and tell different kinds of stories. Each of this first issue's four tales have a completely different flavor, which makes sense as each cat is very different. The story of D'Argent, the black and white French cat who can spread both good and bad luck, is a sweet story of him helping a human friend find love. Ix, the cat from the far future with the hyper-evolved brain, breaks the fourth wall and shows the reader some fun interactive number/letter games and optical illusions. Gargogga, the smilodon (that's sabre-toothed tiger in layman's terms), wanders the cold winter of prehistoria, where the last of the smilodons shows just how big his heart is. And in my favorite tale of the issue, Bektah, the guardian cat of a young Pharaoh, must save his young master from his own ill chosen words when a demon takes him up on an offer made rashly. And all of that is framed by one page intros featuring Scratch's supporting cast in homage to all manner of classic TV hosts, from Rod Serling and The Twilight Zone to Masterpiece Theatre. I have an affinity for all ages comics, anyone who has read more than a couple posts on here knows that, and the original Scratch 9 really grabbed me, so I was glad to get my hands on this new issue. If you are a cat lover, or a lover of any fun animal story, this is a comic well worth trying.

Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 3/20

Five Ghosts: The Haunting of Fabian Gray #1
Story: Frank J. Barbiere
Art: Chris Mooneyham

I love comics and movies influenced by pulps, that sort of story that is full of action and character, with a crime of supernatural edge. The high concept of Image's new series, Five Ghosts: The Haunting of Fabian Gray is that an Indiana Jones-esque treasure hunter has acquired the abilities of five literary characters: the detective, the archer, the wizard, the samurai, and the vampire. However, it seems that these powers are killing him. We see Fabian use his powers on one of his hunts (although it seems like he's as much a thief as he is a treasure hunter), and then bed his client. He is also on a quest to find a mystical artifact that he is hoping will awaken his sister from a mystically induced coma. The details are a bit sketchy, but it's only one issue in, so frankly we got more story than we do in a lot of issue ones.There's some great set up of a cult or evil society chasing after Fabian, and in the end Fabian and a man I assume is his brother-in-law, or at least his sister's significant other, run afoul of a tribe that may or may not have the stone they seek. It's a lot of classic pulp and serial tropes tossed together that work really well. The characters grab you right away, and you see there's more to Fabian than meets the eye. The art fits the book perfectly, with the grit that suits the period. Like a lot of pulp influenced stories, the series is set in the 40s, and seems to thoroughly researched. This is a very impressive first issue, and sets up a series that has a ton of potential.

Justice League #18
Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Jesus Saiz/ Gary Frank

While I have found Justice League a bit hit or miss since the New 52 began, the issues starting with "Throne of Atlantis" have been firing on all cylinders, and while this issue seemed like it was going to be a downtime sort of issue, we got a good amount of forward momentum, as well as expanding the team and really meeting the New 52 versions of some characters we either haven't seen or have gotten very little exposure to. After needing to call in the reserves during the attack by Atlantis, the League decides it's time to find some full time members. The most interesting of these characters is the New 52 Atom, a completely new character. While hints of Ryan Choi had been dropped, and Ray Palmer was a recurring character on the late, lamented Frankenstein Agent of SHADE series, it seems this Atom is Rhonda Pineda, a student at Ivy University, the school that both Palmer and Choi have been associated with, so it's possible her background will tie in more with them. I want to see more of this character, and how she is going to fit in with the new team. I also enjoyed seeing a completely new character, Goldrush. I've found a distinct lack of brand new characters in the New 52, so any chance to expand and try new things is welcomed by me. Johns ends the issue with something a mystery and cliffhanger, moving the series towards the upcoming Trinity War. I was also excited to see the art for this issue by the dramatically under-rated Jesus Saiz, who has been flying under the radar for too many years. I hope this issue raises his profile enough to get him on a major book soon. The Shazam back up story, which has been the highlight of the series for much of its run (which is not a slight at the main story. The back up is just that good), continues as well, setting up Billy's final confrontation with Black Adam and the Seven Sins. I like how Billy has grown from the seeming brat he was at the start into someone who clearly wants to do what's right but has baggage that is making it hard, and I like the further development of the other kids staying at the foster home with Billy. Artist Gary Frank also wins the award for creepiest designs of the week for the personifications of the Seven Deadly Sins. Those are some creepy monsters.

Saga #11
Story: Brian K Vaughan
Art: Fiona Staples

Every issue of Saga is a gift, a perfect comic. Picking up right after the events of last issue, we watch as Alana, Marko, Hazel and the rest of our protagonists flee the birth of the giant space creature, while The Will tries to keep his own ship together. We get very little of The Will and his crew, though, as this issue really focuses on Marko and his father, as Barr meets the end that he has been expecting for the past few issues. The really incredible scene is Marko's flashback to a memory of his father. The entire sequence is in their native language, so none of it was decipherable to me, but the art perfectly conveyed the story and the emotion of Marko's fond remembrance of a parent now lost. Vaughan finds a way to pack so much emotion into one issue, and Staples makes it so real; it's that kind of synergy that makes this medium work as well as it does. On the other end of the spectrum, the opening scene, the flashback to Alan and Marko's more... intimate moment before the birth of their daughter, is hilarious. It's bawdy and so real in how awkward it is. And even with all this personal stuff going on, Vaughan finds a way to mix in some new sci-fi/fantasy aspects to the story that continue to build the world. If every comic was half as good as Saga, the industry would be a wonderland of amazing work.

Star Wars: Legacy Vol.2 #1
Story: Corinna Bechko & Gabriel Hardman
Art: Gabriel Hardman

It's great to be back in the future of the Galaxy Far, Far Away. As excited as I was for new Star Wars: Legacy, I admit the lack of John Ostrander and Jan Duuresema had me a little nervous. Fortunately, new creators Corinna Cechko and Gabriel Hardman brought their A-game on this first issue. We're thrust right into a universe where the clean up from the last war is under way and the fallout from the Sith War is not entirely done. While it was nice to see the ruling triumvirate again, Empress Fel, Admiral Staazi, and Master K'Krukh are the only characters to return from the old series, and that's good; having a lot of teases of the old series would just make people expect to see all those characters again, while this feels like more of a fresh start. Ania Solo, the descendant of Han and Leia on what I assume is their son Jacen's side (versus on their daughter Jaina's side, who are the Fel dynasty), is our new hero, and takes after her great grandfather, Han. While Cade Skywalker was on the fringe of things, running away from his past as a Jedi Padawan and the loss of his father, it seems Ania has been living on the fringe for her whole life, is used to it, and is looking for a way to get out of it. She's tough, savvy, and smart, just like all the best Star Wars heroines. By the end of the issue, we have met Ania, her friend/sidekick Sauk, a Mon Calamari (Admiral Ackbar's people) engineer, an Imperial Knight imprisoned, and a Sith with an agenda of his own. All the pieces are in place for an exciting Star Wars series, familiar and still with some interesting new twists.


By the way, this is my 100th post, which is pretty exciting, and I'm hoping to do something midweek for post 101 that will celebrate hitting the milestone. Stay tuned!